PartⅡ. The GALAXY S4: Connecting People Emotionally

GALAXY S4: Features on top of Features

With our smartphones on us at all times, we’re almost never short a camera to capture the fun, funny, and most memorable moments of our lives.  Many people feel a sense of happiness when they look back on pictures of good times, and this led Samsung to bolster the camera features of the GALAXY S4.

The Dual Camera feature was created so the person taking the picture could also be included in the picture. Equipped with a 13 megapixel rear camera and a 2 megapixel front camera, the GALAXY S4 places both the person taking the picture and the person whose picture is being taken in a single frame. Now you can always be in the photo!

While still photos and videos are both excellent ways to capture memories, the GALAXY S4 features an entirely new way to remember moments. This is done through the feature called Sound & Shot, which stores sound and voice together as the picture is taken, such as the sound of cooing and giggling when a picture of a baby is taken, or a group cheering “Happy Birthday” when someone blows out the candles on his or her cake.

Other outcomes of the team’s creative ideas include Erazer, which allows the user to erase undesired objects in pictures (goodbye photobombs!), and Animated Photo, where images move within a standstill screen. Again, these feature came about by listening to the opinions of colleagues: “I had to take a picture several times because I didn’t like something in the background”; and “In TV shows or films, the main character is standing still at a traffic light, while other people and cars are moving fast in the background. That would look fantastic in pictures!”

In addition to the revamped camera, other features that promote connectivity were introduced. The Group Play feature was created with focus on establishing strong ties among GALAXY S4 users. With this function, users can directly connect with other GALAXY S4 users to enjoy music and games together, and also gather pictures to create a joint portfolio without even requiring a hotspot.

Much attention was given to visual elements as well to maximize the feeling that users are sharing important moments. For example, when users are listening to music together in the same location, their respective screens display a speaker and wavelengths are displayed according to the intensity of the music. It’s almost like going to a concert – the users feel like they are enjoying music collectively as a shared experience.

The Story Album is intended to enhance user enjoyment considering that many people these days do not often look at traditional photo albums to reminisce about the past. The initial concept was to enable the user to create a photo album right there in their phone; however, research indicated that users created albums not only to look at pictures but to think back on what happened when the pictures were taken. The feature was further expanded, so that it’s almost like a scrapbook – users can leave memos with their photos in the album to record anything they like – the weather, a funny quote, or simply where the photo was taken.

The innovation did not stop there. Samsung also introduced a shipment system where users can make an online order of albums to receive a real-life photo album which they can keep for many years or give as a gift. Holiday shopping just got easier!

Features that focus on health and wellbeing

Switching gears a bit, the development team wanted to make sure that for all the fun you have with your phone, you also remember your health!  S Health falls under the empowered living focus that helps define the GALAXY S4. The sensors embedded in the GALAXY S4 recognize the amount of exercise the user does and in what kind of environment. By making a connection to compatible accessories, the user can manage additional health information, such as weight and blood sugar levels.

Samsung was so committed to this idea that during development employees visited the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in Korea to give a presentation on the application.  And even better, they completed the process necessary to receive approval of the GALAXY S4 as a medical device. Throughout this process, considerable help was provided by Samsung Electronics’ Medical Device Division, which has extensive experience with medical devices.

Golden moments in life shared with the GALAXY S4

So, yes, it’s probably pretty clear right now that the phone is awesome!  But, the GALAXY S4 does not seek to serve as a life companion through major functions alone. While some employees were developing functions that would make users’ lives more convenient and enriching, other employees were focused on creating a sensitive and intuitive design that represented convenience and enrichment through the interactive screen and icons.

A leading example is the Lock Screen.  Normally not the coolest kid on the block, right? While other smartphone manufacturers only saw the Lock Screen as a method of protecting the user’s screen, Samsung gave it some pizazz by making it look like waves of water rippling across the screen. Likewise, great focus was placed on delivering the ‘life companion’ concept through effective visual displays on the LCD screen for development of the Galaxy S4.

Attention was paid to every detail. Rays of light gather when the user places his or her finger on the Lock Screen, and they spread apart when the user slightly pushes his or her finger. This effect reminds users of the brilliant, radiant aspects of their lives and satisfying sound effects were also added. The designers and product planners agreed that the ‘sound of sunlight breaking when it touches leaves should be created so that it be used when rays of light spread apart.’

The concept of light and brilliance was consistently adopted for marketing as well. In the teaser video for Samsung UNPACKED 2013, there was a scene where a boy named Jeremy looked into a box and light flowed out. This scene was made possible because Samsung’s planning, design, development, and marketing personnel engaged in close communication and implemented the same aligned strategy that originated from the initial creation phase of the GALAXY S4.  All the pieces of the puzzle fit together.

Delivering emotional experiences with greater use

So what is a product without a “wow” factor?  Not much.  But the best part about Galaxy S4 is that the wow keeps on going.  The development team‘s goal was for initial satisfaction, as well as sustained emotional satisfaction over time as they use the product more and more.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is rife with examples of features that satisfy long-term, and take into consideration all those opinions gathered by the team.  One comment that came up again and again was that Smartphones are difficult to use for people who are not accustomed to them.  Therefore a couple of strategies and functions were put into place. Both Easy Mode, which allows for an easy switch into a large screen, large buttons, and simple functions, and ChatOn can be used for remote access. The Help application became more user-friendly as it walks the users step-by-step on how to use different functions on the phone and was further upgraded to add functional usage videos. This function explains to the user how to use the product in different situations and asks the user to test the product. All of these features help to make the GALAXY S4 is more user-friendly than previous phones.

At the beginning of Samsung UNPACKED 2013, Samsung Electronics confidently asked this question to the audience: “Life is a journey. What device would you take on your journey?”

The answer is here: a phone that enriches our lives; a phone that enhances; and a phone that remembers and shares the brilliant, beautiful moments that each of us experience every day.

*All functionality, features, specifications and other product information provided in this document including, but not limited to, the benefits, design, pricing, components, performance, availability, and capabilities of the product are subject to change without notice or obligation